How blade steel affects your buying

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000Robert said:
Cutting bolts isn't the subject... It's the fact that the steel CAN do it if that was ever needed. Of course, none of us want to ever be in a situation where we would need a knife to do that. But it's nice to know that the steel could do it.
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Just for the record cutting a bolt can be and has been done by quite a few guys with 1075, 1080, 1084, 5160, 1080/15n20 pattern welded and if I remember correctly...W2.
 
That springs to mind the Buck Knives emblem, hammering down through a spike on an anvil. Back, wow many years now, 1976 or so, just got out of the Navy STG4, and had my trusty Buck 110. Worked as an industrial electrician and I was touting the strength and edge of my 110 to a fellow worker. Had a bundle of 3/4" rigid conduit with a metal band around it, so I showed him that I could lever my Buck 110 through that steel band! And, so I did, inserted the blade between the conduit and started to pull the blade up against the steel band. As it 'cut/sheared' through the steel banding, I didn't notice that the force I was using caused the back spring to buckle. BUT, I got through the steel band and the edge still looked pretty good. The guy was impressed, but now my folder was no longer locking up or useable in that condition. I don't recall if I tried to reach out to Buck Knives, I don't think I did because I knew what I DID was not normal wear and tear on a knife. But, it did it :)
G2
 
Gary W. Graley said:
That springs to mind the Buck Knives emblem, hammering down through a spike on an anvil. Back, wow many years now, 1976 or so, just got out of the Navy STG4, and had my trusty Buck 110. Worked as an industrial electrician and I was touting the strength and edge of my 110 to a fellow worker. Had a bundle of 3/4" rigid conduit with a metal band around it, so I showed him that I could lever my Buck 110 through that steel band! And, so I did, inserted the blade between the conduit and started to pull the blade up against the steel band. As it 'cut/sheared' through the steel banding, I didn't notice that the force I was using caused the back spring to buckle. BUT, I got through the steel band and the edge still looked pretty good. The guy was impressed, but now my folder was no longer locking up or useable in that condition. I don't recall if I tried to reach out to Buck Knives, I don't think I did because I knew what I DID was not normal wear and tear on a knife. But, it did it :)
G2
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People got by without modern steels for centuries.
 
I am probably too new to even answer this one, but my limited experience has led me to believe that the type of steel doesn't matter as much as heat treat. My SOG AUS8 holds an edge just as long as my BM S30v which is very disappointing. I am not a fan of my Civivi D2. I have however just ordered my first S110v Para3 yesterday so I am hoping for a better outcome than with the BM. I will probably buy Maxamet, Cruwear, and 20cv next if I like the S110v.
 
A lot probably depends on where the steel was made or bought. And also on the honesty of people. Maybe some people lie about a steel or maybe the seller that they bought the steel from lied to them.
 
I lack the sufficient knowledge to be a proper steel nerd, and neither do I consider myself a steel snob. Steel has some impact on some of my purchases, but it is not necessarily high on the list of deciding factors, especially if I just really like the knife. Hell, I've had plenty of knives in boring old 154CM, and they served me just fine without me knowing any better or putting much thought to it.

I do tend to favor Stainless because many of my activities are around water. I like to hike up to lakes and waterfalls a good bit when I'm in the PNW, and when I'm back home in Florida I spend alot of time kayaking in brackish waters and even in the ocean (usually with a Salt though). That being said, I've carried plenty of non-stainless steel over the years and never experienced a major problem in this regard. I am excited at the prospects of Magnacut potentially being the perfectly balanced super-stainless steel however, and hope it lives up to the hype.

There are occasions when I find a particular steel intriguing and buy a knife specifically to give it a try, and I think the LW Spyderco offerings are the ideal knives for this purpose. My K390 stretch is a good example. I had no real interest in a stretch, but I wanted to try the steel, and went with the Stretch because it was a model I've never experienced. I like the idea of having various LW Spyderco models in various interesting steels.

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000Robert said:
Cutting bolts isn't the subject... It's the fact that the steel CAN do it if that was ever needed. Of course, none of us want to ever be in a situation where we would need a knife to do that. But it's nice to know that the steel could do it.
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Buck made their reputation on That.....😁
 
000Robert said:
Can the cheaper steels cut bolts in half using a hammer on the spine? My CPK knives in D3V steel can. I care nothing about collecting a knife that can't get the job done, just because it's pretty. I learned a long time ago not to trust something, or someone, just because it's pretty. If others don't care, then that's fine - it's their money. As for me, I'll stick to steel that can get the tough jobs done with zero edge damage and still be pretty.
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Buck claimed to be able to split a bolt in half by pounding on the spine…and probably could. Look at their shields closely…while it’s difficult to make out, I believe that’s the image.

Oops, Gary beat me to it.
My apologies
Lee
 
I come for a time when garbage steel on folders was widespread and normal. Buck 420HC was considered a great solid steel (to me it still is) 440C was king and steels like AUS6A and AUS8A were considered great exotic Japanese steels. These days even garbage knives have steel that can take a razor edge (a dangerous thing in some ways think about lock failure.) This is because decent steel is now easier and economical to make. I don't care what anyone says those new Chinese stainless steels are pretty damn good.

If the steel is total garbage I don't want it. If it is a usable working steel like Buck's 420HC it does not matter. If the price is high, unless the knife has a unique redeeming feature that interests me like the Flavio Ikoma (sold by CRKT) deadbolt lock, the steel better reflect the price (a high end steel) or I am buying something else.

Then there is the matter of improperly heat treated high end steel with improper quality control for the sole purpose of marketing the "super steel" in a product. That is another story though.

For my uses I probably won't know the difference between a decent budget steel and a super steel until one day I have to do a lot of cutting. If my super steel doesn't hold up well I will be pissed.
 
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It depends on the type of knife. For the past several years, most of my modern folders have ended up being either M390, or S35VN. While I like my traditionals with1095 or CV steels, stainless blades work better for me in the humid Summers around here. I like seeing that more traditionals are being made with the newer steels, like 154CM & M-390.
 
NG VI said:
They didn't reliably sanitary food and water either, and easily annihilated microbes wiped them out en masse.


What 'got by' in centuries past is no way to set your personal standards today.
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I don't want to speak for Robert, but I think the point being made is - if we are truly being honest - that all the new supersteels are just a luxury, and certainly not a necessity for general knife uses.
 
To me this thread is exclusively for modern folders, for traditionals the question usually is carbon or stainless. So, I am really curious, is there somebody who got a few knifes identical with everything else with exception of the blade material and maybe the handle color, for example few Dragonflies or Delicas - how much difference is observed with regular (not testing by cutting countless ropes or cardboard) use?
 
vinprom said:
To me this thread is exclusively for modern folders, for traditionals the question usually is carbon or stainless. So, I am really curious, is there somebody who got a few knifes identical with everything else with exception of the blade material and maybe the handle color, for example few Dragonflies or Delicas - how much difference is observed with regular (not testing by cutting countless ropes or cardboard) use?
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I agree, the latest and greatest steel tends to be more of an thing for purchasing modern folders.
There has always been change in blade steel, but they used to be slow in coming on board.
There was a time when the best blades were made of bronze. Of course eventually Iron with carbon brought in steel, and the improvements just kept on happening... But slowly.
People experimented by adding in this or that, heat treating this or that way, and so it never stopped. Today we see a bunch of new specialty steels being added in to the mix all the time.
Again, changes/advances made in history on metals was pretty slow in happening, but today it's like if you blink, your previous high standard metal gets pushed aside for the latest high standard metal. And, these metals have often become ridiculously expensive for what we consider being a blade steel. Keeping up with the latest now is so fast paced, that it becomes kind of like a game... A game not everyone wants to play.
If recession hits Americans hard enough, this will slow the pace down, since less disposable income may be used by folks to garner that wee bit more performance out of their knives.

Yeah, chasing the latest high grade steel isn't for everyone.
I have nothing more than a small daily carry Buck 55 lock-back with 420hc steel that serves me well enough. And, as for my collecting hobby, the type of steel is only important for me to know in order for me to perform proper routine maintenance on them.
 
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If you look into the traditional threads steel is mentioned beyond just SS or Carbon Steel . Especially in fixed blades, but you do see several traditional knives in M390, 440C and so on. Even GEC used O1, 1095, 440C, 420 and so on.
Some people care about steel some do not, in all types of knives.
 
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